Stef,
The Cryptography project, which has Cryptography, CryptographyPlugins,
LayeredProtocol and SSL packages are all tagged with pharo. When I look at
the pharo tag, none of these show up. Do they need to be releases?
How can I use the pharo tag from inside of Pharo, with the Monticello
Browser?
Rob
-----Original Message-----
From: Stéphane Ducasse
Sent: Thursday, May 12, 2011 10:10 AM
To: [email protected]
Subject: Re: [Pharo-project] SSL/HTTPS -
SecureSocketStream/SSLSessionforPharo/Squeak and other Smalltalk
implementations
Or you keep
Cryptology and publish a pharo tag.
Stef
On May 12, 2011, at 3:52 PM, Rob Withers wrote:
Try this, after loading the Crypto packages. I haven't tried it myself,
yet, as I only got on this list and loaded Pharo a few days ago, but I
will probably dig into it over the weekend. I did load Crypto, though.
http://www.squeaksource.com/Cryptography/SSL-mtf.16.mcz
Is there a Pharo repository I could drop ported code into?
Regards,
Rob
-----Original Message----- From: Sven Van Caekenberghe
Sent: Tuesday, May 10, 2011 1:42 PM
To: Pharo Project
Subject: [Pharo-project] SSL/HTTPS - SecureSocketStream/SSLSession
forPharo/Squeak and other Smalltalk implementations
SSL/HTTPS - SecureSocketStream/SSLSession for Pharo/Squeak and other
Smalltalk implementations
HTTP client and server functionality has become an essential part of any
Smalltalk implementation. There exist various open source solutions
delivering this functionality.
Users quickly find out that HTTPS is not as readily available as HTTP.
Although a solution exists in the form of SqueakSSL, it is not easily
portable to Pharo and certainly not to other Smalltalk implementations.
Furthermore, SqueakSSL is incomplete and more a working proof of concept
than a high quality, high performance, maintainable piece of code,
partially because of its dependence on the internals of SocketStream.
Hence, some people wanting HTTPS on Pharo as well as one organisation have
come foreword with a bounty to force a solution. Here are the
requirements, a plan of action and a number of steps to build such a
solution.
First of all, it would be stupid not to start from the work already done
for SqueakSSL. Any new solution should start from the existing plugin,
from the existing set of primitives and from the current implementation of
these primitives for the Windows, Mac OS X and Linux platforms.
The Smalltalk part of the solution should be as platform independent as
possible. We therefor need a new, clean implementation of SocketStream,
with proper internal buffering and optimised versions of the bulk input
and output primitives. The code should be time and space efficient. At
first, only binary I/O is needed. Encoding/decoding is best done by
wrapping the stream. Maybe a bivalent stream could be an option. The
current ASCII support in quite limited.
Next a SecureSocketStream can be implemented using this clean base
combined with the SSLSession primitives. Here too, time and space
efficiency are important although SSL will by definition be less
efficient.
Eventually, HTTP frameworks can then use this SecureSocketStream to
actually implement HTTPS. Although the primary requirement is client
functionality, server functionality should be provided as well.
Next the existing issues with certificates need to be resolved, on all 3
platforms.
Finally, the C code of the plugin for each of the 3 platforms needs to be
cleaned up and improved where necessary. This requires contributions from
developers who know and understand a platform as well as how SSL is
supposed to work. Furthermore they have to understand and be motivated to
work on Smalltalk plugins. Up to 3 different developers might be needed.
The current implementation on Mac OS X does not seem to (directly) use the
standard OpenSSL library from Linux although this library exists on Mac OS
X. This could be an opportunity to reduce the number of implementations of
the plugin to 2 API's.
Needless to say the whole implementation should be open source licensed
(MIT), be documented and have a number of units tests to cover it's main
functionality as well edge cases encountered in the field.
Friendly cooperation with other open source projects in the Smalltalk
world is a plus. This project should benefit the whole community.
The bounty should be split in different parts.
The first part is setting up the new project, delivering the new
SocketStream, SSLSession and SecureSocketStream, including the HTTPS
client proof of concept. Traction within the community has to be
developed.
Next the issues with the plugin have to be identified. Then the work on
the plugin code for each platform has to be defined and 3 more bounties
could be offered.
The goal should be to include the plugin in VM's by default.
With a proper solution to the plugin issues, SSL server functionality
should be no problem.
I offer to take on part one and help manage the coordination of this
project.
So is there anyone capable and willing to help out on the plugin on on one
or more platforms for part of the bounty ?
Are there others who wish to raise the bounty ?
We will need a couple of good beta testers who understand this field as
well.
Sven
